Young Female Athletes
Young people today are surrounded by cameras, social networking apps, and images that tell them how to look and behave. The world of competitive sports adds significantly to the already existing pressures of today's society. Unfortunately, female athletes often succumb to these pressures and take drastic measures to supposedly look and perform their best. Young people need to know that they dont need to alter themselves to be the best. Action needs to be taken to put young female athletes on the path to realization and healthy lifestyles. Research has been done to prove the excessive amounts of pressure and its effects on female athletes. The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), in a study of Division One NCAA athletes, found that
over one third of female athletes claimed they were suffering from side effects and symptoms that qualified them for the anorexia nervosa disease. Unfortunately, the statistics get even higher in sports that are judged. According to expert NL Zucker in his article Protective Factors For Eating Disorders in Female College Athletes, judged sports has a 13% higher rate of eating disorders in comparison to the 3% of eating disorders found in refereed sports. However one of the most alarming statistics was done in 1992 by the American college of sports medicine. They found 62% of the athletes involved in sports like figure skating and gymnastics are affected by eating disorders. (Bulimia.com). These statistics are getting too high and the lives of too many athletes are suffering. This can’t continue. As a competitive dancer, I have firsthand experience with with the pressures and problems female athletes face. My dance teacher decided that as I and my fellow teammates grew up, we all had to shape ourselves into the perfect dancers she wanted on her team. I took drastic measures to change who I was even though I was aware, intuitively, it was not who I wanted to be. On top of our five hour dance days, we were required to work out in the gym, follow a restricted diet, and fall under a certain body fat percentage in order to compete. This toxic environment deteriorated everything I once found important and put all my focus into looking and performing at a level of perfection. Many athletic coaches and parents might argue that athletes are not being unhealthy and are just practicing healthy lifestyles but there is an obvious fine line between a healthy and unhealthy lifestyle. Parents and coaches can't ignore or deny their child athletes suffering from the pressures they put on their own kids. No trophy or gold medal is worth the risk of your child's health or life. We need to stop ignoring it and do something to stop it. In an L.A. times article, Disorder Consumed Her Life: Gymnastics: Former Elite Athlete Christy Henrich Gave Into Fatal Disease that Destroyed Her. by Wendy Witherspoon, she discusses the tragedy of U.S. gymnast Christy Henrich, who suffered from anorexia and bulimia, eating disorders which took over her health for an extended period of time. After being judged in a gymnastics meet one of the judges told her that she was too fat to make any further progress or advance to a higher level. These cruel comments and pressures led her to an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. Eventually her disorder caused multiple organ failures and killed her at the age of 22, she was 47 pounds. Henrich is not the only one giving her life to eating disorders and the pressures that cause them. According to The Renfrew Center Foundation for Eating Disorders, 20% of people who suffer from anorexia will die from complications related to their eating disorder including, suicide and heart problems. These athletes need to know that there are other options. Easier safer options. It's never worth your life. Action needs to be taken to inform these athletes and put this to a stop.
over one third of female athletes claimed they were suffering from side effects and symptoms that qualified them for the anorexia nervosa disease. Unfortunately, the statistics get even higher in sports that are judged. According to expert NL Zucker in his article Protective Factors For Eating Disorders in Female College Athletes, judged sports has a 13% higher rate of eating disorders in comparison to the 3% of eating disorders found in refereed sports. However one of the most alarming statistics was done in 1992 by the American college of sports medicine. They found 62% of the athletes involved in sports like figure skating and gymnastics are affected by eating disorders. (Bulimia.com). These statistics are getting too high and the lives of too many athletes are suffering. This can’t continue. As a competitive dancer, I have firsthand experience with with the pressures and problems female athletes face. My dance teacher decided that as I and my fellow teammates grew up, we all had to shape ourselves into the perfect dancers she wanted on her team. I took drastic measures to change who I was even though I was aware, intuitively, it was not who I wanted to be. On top of our five hour dance days, we were required to work out in the gym, follow a restricted diet, and fall under a certain body fat percentage in order to compete. This toxic environment deteriorated everything I once found important and put all my focus into looking and performing at a level of perfection. Many athletic coaches and parents might argue that athletes are not being unhealthy and are just practicing healthy lifestyles but there is an obvious fine line between a healthy and unhealthy lifestyle. Parents and coaches can't ignore or deny their child athletes suffering from the pressures they put on their own kids. No trophy or gold medal is worth the risk of your child's health or life. We need to stop ignoring it and do something to stop it. In an L.A. times article, Disorder Consumed Her Life: Gymnastics: Former Elite Athlete Christy Henrich Gave Into Fatal Disease that Destroyed Her. by Wendy Witherspoon, she discusses the tragedy of U.S. gymnast Christy Henrich, who suffered from anorexia and bulimia, eating disorders which took over her health for an extended period of time. After being judged in a gymnastics meet one of the judges told her that she was too fat to make any further progress or advance to a higher level. These cruel comments and pressures led her to an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. Eventually her disorder caused multiple organ failures and killed her at the age of 22, she was 47 pounds. Henrich is not the only one giving her life to eating disorders and the pressures that cause them. According to The Renfrew Center Foundation for Eating Disorders, 20% of people who suffer from anorexia will die from complications related to their eating disorder including, suicide and heart problems. These athletes need to know that there are other options. Easier safer options. It's never worth your life. Action needs to be taken to inform these athletes and put this to a stop.